Upon returning home to the United States Chris and Dusty’s time was spent saving for their next trip back to see the kids. In December of 2005 they visited again. This time, they were able to complete some needed repairs on the transitional house; which they provided from their own savings, Tony Annunziato’s continual generosity and the donations of family and friends in the U.S. -- who were already feeling connected to the kids by means of Dusty and Chris’ passionate stories.
While in Bucharest they came in contact with poverty and hardship they could not have imagined growing up in the United States. What shocked them the most were the street-children who lived in squalor reminiscent of a Charles Dickens novel. During street tours, hosted by Mihaela, they regularly encountered abandoned and orphaned children forced to live in the sewers, begging for food, without the most basic medical care. Many of these children could be seen resorting to “huffing” paint and self mutilation to escape from their insufferable conditions. But thanks to Mihaela and Tony, Chris and Dusty were also able to experience what a difference the transitional housing could make for these children; providing basic needs and nurturing their emotional well-being allowed the kids at the house to pursue school and a bright future -- thus helping to break the vicious cycle of poverty. During their ten day stay at the house, Chris and Dusty came to deeply love the kids they got to know and were moved by their circumstances. They ended their first visit over tears and vowed to return to help out as soon as finances allowed.
In April of 2004, Dusty Hutchison (Co-founder) and Chris Redig (Executive Director in the U.S.) planned to spend their spring visiting: Greece, Turkey, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Bulgaria and finally, ten days in Romania -- at the invitation of a friend, Tony Annunziato, to visit a transitional house that he was helping to support. The house was caring for 23 children and running a small street program, under the supervision of Mihaela Voivozeanu -- who would later become Ana’s Children’s Executive Director in Romania.
